Tigers strike early and often but allow go-ahead touchdown with just 11 seconds to play in loss at M
Sports Editor
It was supposed to be another easy win for The University of Memphis Tigers football team.
At first glance it started out that way – as the Tigers built a 17-0 lead en route to having a 17-10 lead by halftime. The Tigers (1-4, 0-1 in C-USA) ended up succumbing to a late rally by Middle Tennessee, losing 38-31 in devastating fashion on the road in Murfreesboro.
The Tigers were spurred early by senior running back Billy Foster and freshman quarterback Taylor Reed, both of whom scored on the ground to help the Tigers build a lead midway through the second quarter. MTSU responded with 17 straight points to tie the game. The Blue Raiders eventually would capture the lead in the late stages, winning their first game of the season and handing the Tigers their fourth loss in five games this season.
"We were ready to play this game," head coach Larry Porter said. "Even when they came back, we responded. This is a painful loss, and there were a number of opportunities we had to win this game and we could not get it done. I hurt deeply for this team because I thought the effort they brought tonight was good enough to get a win."
The Tigers played one of their best games, this season, offensively on Saturday. The ground attack accumulated 165 yards of rushing, totaling three scores, and was led by Foster's two touchdowns on 23 carries and freshman Artaves Gibson's 54 yards on 14 carries. Reed completed 23-of-32 passes for 230 yards and one score, with 10 catches going to senior Tanner Rehrer. Seven of Rehrer's career high 10 catches were for first downs.
"The ball didn't bounce our way,'' Rehrer said. ‘‘This one hurts …hurts real bad. But on another note we battled our butts off and proved we can put up points.''
The 31 points were the most by a Porter-led team thus far in his tenure. But this time the defense struggled more so than the inept offense that hasn't shown progress over the last few weeks. The defense couldn't maintain the lead the offense gave them and allowed the winning touchdown in the closing seconds of the game. With only 1:41 remaining in the game and the score nodded at 31 apiece, MTSU drove down the field and scored, putting them up 38-31 and sending the Tigers home with another heartbreaking loss.
"It was a great effort by our team as a whole," junior defensive tackle Dontari Poe said. "There is a lot we can learn from this game. But at the end of the day, we have to learn how to pull out the win."
Thursday, October 6, 2011
The heartbreak kids
‘W’ on the horizon for Tigers?
Sports Editor
David Minkin
The University of Memphis Tigers football team looks to win their second game in two years against Middle Tennessee. The Tigers defeated the Blue Raiders 24-17 last season.
For possibly the first time this season, the Tigers enter gameday with at least one statistical advantage over an opponent — a notch in the win column.
Though the Tigers (1-3, 0-1 in C-USA) come into tomorrow's contest against a currently winless (0-3) yet heavily favored Middle Tennessee State University team, the host Tigers will suit virtually the same roster that topped MTSU 24-17 in Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium last season. Of course, the win constituted UM's lone victory on the season.
"I understand that (MTSU) have been struggling, but they're probably better than their record," head coach Larry Porter said at his weekly press luncheon. "Offensively, with Kilgore, Cunningham and McDonald they have some talent and we expect them to be explosive on that side of the ball."
The Blue Raiders come into tomorrow's game ranked 23rd nationally in total yardage (461.3), 20th in passing yards per game (317.7) and 63rd in rushing yards per game (147.0). This will be a tough feat for a defense that is ranked near the bottom of the NCAA in every major statistical category, but Porter still believes in his defense.
"I stand strongly encourage on our defense and there were some things in this past game that we can build on," Porter said. "The first three games we gave up 15 plays over 20 yards, this last game we had only four. When you look at the film, there's a lot to be encouraged about defensively."
Porter said the defense is coming along, though numbers would suggest the opposite. But the offense is the focus of the team this week. The Tigers are averaging 11.0 points per game, ranking 116th in the nation, 115th in total yards per game (272.8) and have only converted on third downs at a 31 percent rate (21-of-67); thus not allowing the defense to catch their breath. Porter understands that the offense has to do its job.
"Offensively, we definitely have a lot of work to do," Porter said. "It's not just fixing one thing or another, but it starts with the offensive line and putting the skill guys in position to step up and be playmakers and take some of the pressure of our young quarterback. Our offensive line will be challenged to perform better."
Most of the problems start not only with the offense, but rather the morale of the team. Porter admits that it gets tough to coach when you're constantly losing.
"Losing's never fun, never has been and never will be," Porter said. "But knowing that you've got a locker room full of young men who care and who are fighting, my frustration comes through them not being able to experience success from winning.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Why we should still care about Tiger football
Sports Editor
Adam Douglas
With a 2-14 record as the head football coach at The University of Memphis in two seasons – also equivalent to one full season in the NFL, Larry Porter's resume doesn't actually speak for itself. It may be safe to say that he's still learning how to be a head coach and we need to give him time. But how much time does he actually need? After all, it took John Calipari six years to build the basketball program to what it is now – though it only took a few short months to get our national championship runner-up banner revoked. And his successor Josh Pastner, was heralded as a great recruiter like Porter, and hasn't been a head coach before either – like Porter. And we all gave him a pass when in his first season the Tigers failed to live up to expectations and didn't make the NCAA tournament and lost 10 games. So why beat down Porter when he was given a program that has been mediocre at best even when DeAngelo Williams graced us with his Heisman Trophy caliber seasons?
The fact of the matter is that despite what everyone thinks, we should definitely care more about football than basketball. When you really look at it, the only thing that matters today in collegiate athletics is football, not basketball. Not to knock basketball, but with all this shuffling and re-shuffling of football teams and their conferences realigning, The University of Memphis and its administration need to realize that we may be in deep trouble with our football program if we don't do something about it quick. And it's also really hard and frustrating to sit in the press box to watch and report on a team that constantly gets beat by 40 or more points in an empty stadium on what seems like a weekly basis, all the while not being able to say anything positive about it.
Because these guys can't win if we don't have their backs and show that we care. We have to start giving the football program the same treatment as the basketball program gets. Sellout the home games, travel to road contests, be proud to say you're from Memphis, stop cheering for the other team and definitely quit allowing other teams outnumber us in our own stadium. We have to support them no matter what. We have to stop acting like one loss means we're not good enough. Quit being a bandwagon fan and stop waiting for the team to win a few games before you start supporting them. They don't owe us anything – we owe them. If we want to compete against conference and regional powers, we have to come out and pack Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium despite the team's record – that's why we should still care.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Woebegone Tigers endure 42-point shutout in front of Liberty Bowl crowd
Sports Editor
David Minkin
Junior linebacker Kenyatta Johnson jars the ball loose from an SMU receiver on Saturday. Despite four takeaways, the Tigers were unable to produce any points through four quarters.
For the 15th time in the last 16 games, The University of Memphis Tigers football team was on the wrong end of the scoreboard, the 10th time in as many games where their opponent has scored 40 points.
In front of a homecoming crowd of 16,748 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, slightly 2,000 people less than last week's win against Austin Peay State University, the Tigers were defeated by Southern Methodist University 42-0. Despite the lopsided loss, head coach Larry Porter said that he saw improvement in his team.
"I thought defensively we started to settle in and play a good brand of football," Porter said. "There are some positives in that we held (SMU) scoreless in the third period and we turned them over four times throughout the game."
Though the Tigers defense held SMU scoreless in the third quarter, they still couldn't capitalize on turnovers. The offense was inept against the Mustangs' defense, accumulating a meager 139 yards of total offense. The Tigers failed to score a touchdown for the second time in the four games this season.
"Offensively, we had a horrible day. There are no excuses," Porter said. "All across the board, all 11 guys and including the coaching staff, we've got to be better."
Freshman Quarterback Taylor Reed, who was pressured all day by the SMU frontline, completed 17-of-32 passes for 153 yards. His new main target was senior Tanner Rehrer, who caught five passes for 51 yards while filling in for injured wire receiver Marcus Rucker. Rucker recently underwent arthroscopic knee surgery that will keep him out of action for 4-6 weeks.
Reed said that it is no coincidence that Rehrer has become more a reliable target.
"I've watched a lot of film with Tanner," Reed said. "He's a really intelligent player and sees things really well. So he has a knack for finding spots and getting open."
Without several key players on offense, including injured sophomore running back Jerrell Rhodes, the rushing attack struggled was almost non-existent. The Tigers rushed for a total of 14 yards and couldn't convert on key third downs. The team finished just 2-of-13 on the critical downs, with only 7 first downs to extend drives. They punted 10 times – three shy of an all-time game record.
"Right now we're searching for efficiency within our offense to be able to sustain drives and put points on the board," Porter said. "We couldn't run, couldn't pass, couldn't do anything. Offensively, we've got a lot of work to do."
Friday, September 23, 2011
Men’s basketball TV schedule announced
Sports Editor
Published: Friday, September 23, 2011
With the start of basketball just around the corner, beginning with Midnight Madness on October 14th, The University of Memphis men's basketball team released its 2011-2012 television schedule on Thursday.
Out of the 31 games the Tigers play, 27 will be broadcast on television. Memphis' 17 national televised games will be carried by CBS, CBS Sports Network, FOX Sports Net, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU. Comcast Sports South will televise the other 10 contests.
The Tigers first regular season game against Belmont is scheduled for an 11 a.m. tipoff as a part of ESPN's College Hoops Marathon. This is the fourth straight year the Tigers are a part of ESPN's college hoops tip-off.
Notable games to be televised in November include The EA Sports Maui Invitational in Hawaii, with games against Michigan and the winner of a matchup between Duke and Tennessee. The tournament will be broadcast on ESPN.
In December, the Tigers have tough road contests against Miami, which will be televised on ESPN2, and Louisville, which will be broadcast on CBS.
Tigers looking to win two in a row
Tommy West was coach the last time the Tigers won back-to-back games.
Sports Editor
Published: Friday, September 23, 2011
David Minkin
Senior wide receiver and running back Billy Foster escapes for a 93-yard touchdown against Austin Peay. The Tigers will need similar big plays to keep up with Southern Methodist University’s high-powered offense on Saturday.
On Saturday at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, The University of Memphis Tigers football team will seek its first back-to-back wins since 2008, when the Tigers won three in a row under former head coach Tommy West.
But for that to happen, the Tigers must first sustain longer scoring drives on offense and not allow the potent Southern Methodist University offense to gain more than 400 yards against the new-look Tigers defense. SMU comes into the contest ranked 19th overall in the football bowl subdivision in passing yards per game (390.3), 96th in rushing yards per game and 69th in points per game (27.3).
"A lot of people like to talk about their offense, but I want to start with the defense because I think that the defense is very solid and sound and very capable of confusing you and causing some problems," head coach Larry Porter said. "They like to blitz a lot, which always concerns you when you've got a young quarterback."
Though Porter emphasized SMU's defense, its offense – which is reminiscent of SMU head coach June Jones' high-octane offense at the University of Hawaii – makes SMU the team that it is.
"Coach Jones has done a tremendous job in reviving that program," Porter said. "He went away from one of the best quarterbacks in the league in Kyle Padron and went to J.J. McDermott, who's just as good. He has a very strong arm and is a good decision-maker. We're going to have to make sure, from a secondary standpoint, that we close those windows down and force him to make tight throws because they're very active in the passing game."
Though the Tigers defense last played a team from the lower football championship subdivision, Austin Peay, the team looked much improved on that side of the ball. Led by new co-defensive coordinators Mike Dubose and Galen Scott, the Tigers defense held the Governors to 368 yards of total offense while forcing two interceptions and recovering a fumble.
"I want to compliment Coach DuBose and Coach Scott for the way they stepped in and grabbed this defense and took it forward," Porter said. "The knowledge, the energy and the way they took control and got these players to buy into them made a difference. I have to compliment our players as well. They embraced change, and we moved forward."
Kickoff at the Liberty Bowl is scheduled for 11 a.m. The game will be televised by FOX Sports South/FOX Sports Tennessee.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Tigers top Austin Peay 27-6 for Porter’s second win
Sports Editor
It wasn't pretty, but before an announced crowd of 18,808, The University of Memphis Tigers football team ended their 11-game losing streak and defeated the Governors of Austin Peay State University, 27-6. The Tigers (1-2) won for just the second time in their last 15 contests, a dubious feat dating back to the 2010 campaign where they struggled to a 1-11 finish. The revamped Tigers defense, which gave up more than 400 yards of total offense to each their two previous opponents, held the Governors to 368 yards for the game, a notable improvement.
"I want to take my hat off to our defense, under the circumstances, as well as my defensive staff," head coach Larry Porter said. "For them to pick up and almost hold an opponent scoreless the whole game, and overall, despite the circumstances, I'm excited about them."
Freshman quarterback Taylor Reed carved up the APSU defense to the tune of 332 passing yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. One of those touchdowns came on a bizarre play where Reed connected on an 18-yard pass to senior tight end Andrew Ene-inta, who fumbled the ball only to have it recovered by the Tigers for a 22-yard touchdown.
"Things slowed down for me this week, but I have to give credit to those skill players on the outside making plays…It definitely felt good to have things go our way like that," Reed said.
Junior linebackers Akeem Davis and Kenyatta Johnson each had 10 tackles for the re-tooled Tiger defense. But despite the changes on that side of the ball, Tiger players said there's still a lot more work to be done.
"It's a great win – we're going to embrace it, hold on to it and let it soak in – but we have SMU on Saturday," Davis said. "But I have flaws in my game just like we all do. So we have to just keep on practicing, and they say practice makes perfect, but around here at The University of Memphis we believe that perfect practice make perfect."
Not only were players relieved to snap the program's longest losing streak in 25 years, Porter, too, was in better spirits, briefly joking about the state of the program through the last 15 games.
"We've been losing," Porter said, laughing. "Under the circumstances or not, we needed a win."